QUOTES

“He caught me cold. I thought to myself, ‘What am I doing down here? I am not supposed to be down here.’ ”

--Fernando Vargas, on being knocked down by Felix Trinidad

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“I don’t want anything to do with that maggot.”

--Fernando Vargas, on his estranged father

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“We call it cab fare. We hit the other guys so hard they need a taxi to get back to the other sideline.”

--Casey Andrews, Ventura High offensive tackle

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“They said, ‘There’s the pasture, big boy. Get to it.’ Not being completely dumb, I understood.”

--Lee Smelser, joking about retiring after 31 seasons as men’s basketball coach at College of the Canyons

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“It was like watching Forrest Gump, like Mike was superimposed out there.”

--Mark Penberthy on son Mike, a former The Master’s College standout, playing with the Lakers

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“All the MVP stuff on the trophy is written in Spanish that I don’t understand. As far as anyone will know, it could be a dip holder.”

--Jack Wilson, former Thousand Oaks shortstop, on the award he received at the minor league Tex-Mex All-Star game in Mexico

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“He might turn out to be a ballerina, but of course, we’ll still love him.”

--Kathy Mack, wife of St. Bonaventure football coach Jon, on their toddler son, Justin

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“I can yell louder than Jon, hands down. After a game, Jon can hardly speak. I never lose my voice. It’s a gift--although my kids don’t think so.”

--Kathy Mack

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“The tournament is called War on the Floor, except for Sylmar. . . . They get a picnic in the park.”

--Ralph Turner, Canoga Park boys’ basketball coach, on alleged soft pool for host Sylmar

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“I went for the hug and got about halfway around his gut.”

--Coach Jim Bonds of St. Francis on celebrating 315-pound tackle Bobby Garafolo’s 66-yard touchdown on a fumblerooski

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“It’s the first time I’ve ever seen snow. On TV it looks fun. Not today.”

--Cos Abercrombie, Northridge linebacker, on playing at Montana State

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“I feel comfortable here. The people at Alemany High School make you feel at home.”

--Running back De’Andre Scott, weeks before transferring to St. Paul

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“Based upon the information we have, this has been a bona fide resident transfer.”

--Robert Oviedo, St. Paul athletic director, on Scott’s transfer from Alemany

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“Why are we winning? God allows it to happen.”

--Monte Brooks, The Master’s baseball coach

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“I couldn’t get on the little kiddie rides at Magic Mountain because I was too big. My mom would say, ‘Come on, she’s only 4 years old!’ ”

--Kristi Rose, Cal State Northridge’s 6-foot-4 center, on being tall as a kid

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“All the conversations we deal with have to do with our trips to Kaiser Permanente.”

--Steve Marden, former San Fernando baseball coach, on get-togethers with other longtime coaches in the region

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“It was the Twilight Zone, a terrible mistake.”

--Troy Starr, Taft football coach, on blunder that had his offense playing defense

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“It’s a good thing for Tyler Ebell of Ventura, or we’d have reporters all over [Omar] Dittu.”

--Coach Glen Beattie of Flintridge Prep on his team’s top running back

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“The chef had to come out and make sure the waiter wasn’t pocketing the food because I was eating so much.”

--Fluke Fluker, Chatsworth athletic director, on eating six lobsters and a prime rib dinner during a cruise to Aruba

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“I didn’t care anymore. I thought, ‘Why doesn’t the bombing come to me and finish everything?’ ”

--Nevena Siljegovic, Royal volleyball player, on life in her native Yugoslavia

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“It was so fast, I didn’t even realize we were playing bad.”

--Middle blocker Linda Wang on Chatsworth’s three-game loss to Sylmar

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“It is a big turnoff. Guys come in here and say, ‘Nice practice field, now where’s the stadium?’ ”

--Gil Rodriguez, Northridge receiver, on antiquated North Campus Stadium